A pro-Palestine protest in Stockholm, Sweden, has ignited outrage after demonstrators erected a mock entrance gate modeled after the one at the Nazi German death camp Auschwitz. The protesters altered the gate's infamous "Arbeit Macht Frei" ('Work Sets You Free') inscription to read 'Gaza.'
The display was part of a march advocating for the release of Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza. Israeli forces detained Abu Safiya approximately 18 months prior, holding him without charge. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claim he was detained in December 2024 for suspected involvement in terrorist activities and holding a rank within Hamas. However, medical staff and international aid groups who worked with Abu Safiya deny he collaborated with Hamas.
Footage of the protest shows activists carrying the mock gate while wearing blue medical hair nets and clothing resembling hospital scrubs. A drum can be heard in the background, accompanied by chants of 'free, free, free Palestine.'
The demonstration faced sharp criticism from Jewish organizations and Israeli officials, who argued that the use of Holocaust imagery in the context of the Gaza war trivialized the historical event. Israel's ambassador to Sweden, Ziv Nevo Kulman, condemned the display, stating, 'I am following with deep concern the recent antisemitic incidents in Sweden.' He added, 'Whether it is a Jewish doctor subjected to verbal abuse at work, reports of healthcare workers participating in demonstrations where antisemitic statements were heard, or yet another weekly demonstration distorting the Holocaust in ways that leave me shocked, the pattern is deeply troubling.'
The Official Council of Jewish Communities in Sweden also denounced the display. Aaron Verständig, the council's chairman, called the trivialization of the Holocaust 'profoundly offensive and deeply repugnant.'
Daniel Schatz, a Swedish-Jewish researcher, noted that the demonstration occurred openly in front of police officers. He wrote in an op-ed for the Swedish daily Aftonbladet that the passivity of bystanders was remarkable, observing, 'The police are visibly on the scene. Authorities produce strategies, action plans and information campaigns. But when anti-Semitism occurs right before our eyes, very few seem to react.' Schatz further emphasized the historical significance of Auschwitz, stating on X, 'Auschwitz was not just another symbol. It was a death camp where around a million people were murdered in an industrial and systematic manner. For those of us with family members who survived that hell, this is not a political metaphor but an open wound in history.'
Historians estimate that approximately 1.1 million people died at Auschwitz during its operation, with Jews constituting about one million of the victims. Poles, Roma and Sinti, Soviet POWs, and prisoners of other ethnic backgrounds also perished there.
Other elements of the protest included one demonstrator wearing a mask resembling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a leather trench coat with a Star of David band, and appearing to hold a pile of cash. This costume was seen as mimicking the uniform of the Gestapo. Some female demonstrators wore keffiyehs and carried plastic newborn babies.
The current Gaza war began with a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, which resulted in approximately 1,200 deaths and 251 hostages taken. Israel's subsequent military campaign in Gaza has led to over 72,950 reported deaths, according to the territory's health ministry.